Teen goalie charged with homicide by assault in death of referee

Comments

Odd that the parents of the teen have not been in the paper. Usually they are
immediately in front of the cameras saying what a good kid the perp is. Where
are the parents? What statements have they made?

washcomomBeaverton, OR

May 10, 2013 11:17 a.m.

"Gill said the case does not rise to the level of murder or manslaughter.
But a charge of homicide by assault can be filed when a person "causes the
death of another while intentionally or knowingly" trying to injure another
person."I always wondered the difference between all the different
charges. Each state has their own terminology, so this one was a bit different
to me. It's just a shame to have to have something like this in the
law.

MormonSeanSalt Lake City, UT

May 9, 2013 8:00 p.m.

Jim G,

I didn't say it did. I have not once said it. I
haven't even implied it. In fact, I keep having to repeat myself in saying
that I in fact desire justice to be upheld.

What I believe:

The boy committed a crime.To satisfy justice, a punishment needs to be
assigned.To satisfy our requirement to forgive, it is necessary that we
let go of our hard feelings and desire and work to help the boy rather than get
even.

All I have stated is my belief in what is said in John 8:3-11
and 3 Nephi 12:37-48. I have stated "Yea, yea; Nay, nay". I have not
said more or less than what is in the scriptures. I have not said justice should
be robbed. I have not even implied it. I have EVEN stated my support for
justice. I have EVEN re-clarified my belief and statements for those who keep
accusing me of something I have not done.

Have you heard it yet? Do
you now understand that I have only defended the scriptures as being true? What
will it take from me?

EliotSantaquin, UT

May 9, 2013 2:07 p.m.

Justice is served when a punishment is administered that fits the crime
committed. Inflicting a more severe punishment on someone for the purpose of
sending a message to others is not justice.

markSalt Lake City, UT

May 9, 2013 1:17 p.m.

Luke 6:37 Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and
you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

Colossians 3:13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you
may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Matthew 6:14-16 For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your
heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins,
your Father will not forgive your sins.

Jim GMesa, AZ

May 9, 2013 10:53 a.m.

MormonSean. I understand your points, but forgiveness does not preclude justice.
While this young man can be forgiven for his offense, that forgiveness does not
excuse him from the justice he is required to face.

MormonSeanSalt Lake City, UT

May 9, 2013 10:34 a.m.

JSB,

As much as game violence is a valid concern, aggression in
sports has existed since long before video games.

Jim G

On
an earlier article I quoted President Hinckley's talk, entitled
"Forgiveness".

"There are hardened criminals who may have
to be locked up. There are unspeakable crimes, such as deliberate murder and
rape, that justify harsh penalties. But there are some who could be saved from
long, stultifying years in prison because of an unthoughtful, foolish act.
Somehow forgiveness, with love and tolerance, accomplishes miracles that can
happen in no other way."

Again... I want mercy, but I still
uphold justice. Everyone assuming more or less than what I've said judge my
words without the facts. On another article I was falsely accused of showing no
compassion for the family. My accuser had limited knowledge, yet condemned my
words.

We are commanded to forgive. Some add conditions to that
commandment. They have every right to. I don't even disagree with that. But
we will be judged by the same measure. To each his own.

All I'm
saying is that this boy fits into President Hinckley's second category.
Judge him as you will.

MrsHAltamont, UT

May 9, 2013 9:53 a.m.

I love the shirts they are wearing. What a great tribute to their Dad.God
bless this family.

Jim GMesa, AZ

May 9, 2013 9:38 a.m.

MormonSean: Just because people are angered by this act does not mean they only
want vengeance. As you know, in Mormon doctrine, taking a life is an extremely
serious sin because the victim's life, dreams, goals, opportunities and
associations have been cut short. Further, their friends and family have been
irreparably harmed. Repentance for the life-taker, in its full measure, is not
possible because restitution - bringing the person back to life - is not
possible. While the young man almost certainly did not want to kill, he
certainly meant to cause harm, and the harm he did is permanent. Despite the
sympathy you feel for him, there are consequences to our acts, and those
consequences should be appropriate to the harm he did, which was severe.

JSBSugar City, ID

May 9, 2013 8:56 a.m.

I wonder how much violent video and movies this guy has watched. Has he observed
coaches and parents and other players scream at the referee? I can't
justify what he did but he's a product of a violent society. How can we get
our society out of this immersion in violence? Something has to change or these
kinds of things will happen again and again.

AZ Blue & RedGilbert, AZ

May 9, 2013 8:52 a.m.

None of us can speak for this young man who made a serious mistake. Justice must
be served. I think we all agree on that. BUT ruining 2 lives (and families) I
think is not in the best interest of anyone. If this young man shows by his
actions that he has not learned anything or has the same problems and tendencies
then he needs to have the "book" thrown at him BUT if he is willing and
can turn his life around, show sorrow and remorse I think we all should let him
have a chance. (after the proper punishment). I am sure he would like to take
that stupid moment of anger back. There are things we all wish we could take
back BUT we can not.

Crucify him is easy to say but not deserved in
this case. Justice and punishment yes, as well as proper mercy unless he shows
by his actions that more justice and punishment is needed. Since we do not know
him or his situation we need to let the proper authorities make this
determination.

MormonSeanSalt Lake City, UT

May 9, 2013 8:20 a.m.

When I was a teenager I got in fights and made stupid decisions. The adults who
wanted to "lay down the law" and teach me a lesson only infuriated me
more and I didn't listen to them. Why? Because they never listened to me.
They seemed to assume I lived the same life as them, with the same understanding
of responsibility and accountability.

Fortunately for me I had a few
mentors who showed understanding and forgiveness and gave me a few second
chances. They taught instead of fought. Punishments rarely teach lessons,
meanwhile people offering to help work miracles.

I believe the DA
made a very wise decision. I do not agree with charging him as an adult because
the justice system ought to account for age more accurately. But as it does not,
the DA recommended something in between. Some of us have called for showing
partial mercy for very valid reasons. Some of us have called for trying him as
an adult and throwing the book at him, and hard.

This is a compromise
that satisfies the demands of both sides. The only people it doesn't
satisfy want vengeance, not justice.

MugabeACWORTH, GA

May 9, 2013 8:01 a.m.

Well, we can detest the act of that young boy, but we have become a nation of
Gladiators. This behavior is exhibited in boxing, cage fighting and, yes, going
to war against innocent people of another nation. We have taught our kids that
if someone does something to them that they don't like, just retaliate, and
this is what our children are doing. We are constantly at war with each other,
just about every little thing that happens. Can we, or should we, expect any
less for our children?

Secondly, I don't think that the District
Attorney, or anyone else, for that matter, should have the authority to change
the status of an individual, just to be able to inflict more punishment on them.
And for any of us to be in agreement with this, then, we should not have any
problem with our legislature changing the gender of a man to that of a woman, to
justify 'Same Sex Marriages."

We complain about issues such
as this, then, when situations like this happens, we reinforce, in our leaders,
the idea that they have the power to change the Natural Laws. What will it be?

procuradorfiscalTooele, UT

May 9, 2013 7:59 a.m.

Re: " It is extremely unlikely that he meant to murder someone."

Yeah -- so who cares?

The facts indicate he clearly intended
to deliver a vicious, sucker-punch to someone who wasn't even looking, let
alone prepared to guard against it. And that he was motivated by nothing more
than a sense of personal pique over a trivial matter.

That's why
his actions are so dangerous. And why the law takes his kind of predatory
behavior so very seriously.

Nothing short of a long, long jail
sentence can send the proper message to this young miscreant, and to others
similarly situated -- like the young toughs in the same league who twice
previously attacked and inflicted serious injuries on this same ref.

toosmartforyouFarmington, UT

May 9, 2013 12:26 a.m.

Real tough, this kid, to hit a defenseless sports official without any
indication that he was going to do that.

And yes, VIDAR, your
examples are such that indeed, if you can't control yourse3lf and resort to
violent acts to get back at someone and they are killed, then you need to pay
the penalty. If you hit someone who insults your wife/girl friend then you
don't know how to handle the situation. For those types there is room at
the prison if the result is another person's death. And rightly so.

A big mouth many times can get you into trouble. (I've known a few
immature adults that can't hold their tounge and have had a fist suddenly
up-side their head so it does happen, unfortunately.) In this case, a bad temper
got the 17-year old into trouble because it resulted in a death. No way can
that behavior come even close to being justified in any way.

The
soccer league needs to clean house; this behavior is absolutely unacceptable.

RedSalt Lake City, UT

May 8, 2013 8:46 p.m.

Parents who want to win soooooo bad that they yell at the referee over every
silly call they disagree with are part of the problem.

This event
has been brewing for years. All the silly coaches who have temper tantrums and
the parents who don't know the difference between competitive and combative
are all part of the problem.

Football parents take good notes because
you are heading down the same path.

Time to realize that our kids
need love not your pressure to win.

Everyone go look in the mirror
and see if you are part of the problem.

BrianWasilla, AK

May 8, 2013 7:03 p.m.

VIDAR: Fistfight? This wasn't a fistfight just a cheap shot by a cowardly
individual.

FlashbackKearns, UT

May 8, 2013 6:15 p.m.

He'd potentially do more time if they just stuck to Aggravated Assault.

VIDARMurray, UT

May 8, 2013 6:03 p.m.

The charges are fair. He needs to serve time in prison for killing another
person. My guess is he would serve the entire five years. Do we really want to
send people to prison for their entire life; that kill someone in a fistfight?
Every man should think about that who has ever been in a fight. What if it was
me? Some loudmouth insults your wife/girlfriend you hit and kill them, should
you be in prison for the rest of your life? Some guy almost hits your kid in a
car, you get mad and hit his roof, he gets out, you hit him and kill him. should
you spend the rest of your life in prison. This was a seventeen year old kid
that probably was never told that hitting another person could kill them. how
many high school kids get in fights? On a football field out of anger? they hit
each other all the time. Do you want the law to be that if your high school kid
hits another kid on a football field that results in a death that they spend the
rest of their life in prison?

CleetornFuaamotu, Tonga

May 8, 2013 5:54 p.m.

The line between justice and mercy is razor-thin here. While justice for this
crime must be satisfied and punishment be meted out without delay, relegating
this impulsive youngster over to the adult detention system will only cultivate
and harden further criminal tendencies. While his intent was not to kill, that
was still his effect. Nobody else forced him to cock his fist back and let it
fly. Who goes out drinking, gets sloshed and climbs into a car with the intent
to kill? Does that make a resulting death any less impactful just because there
is a lack of intention?

No, justice cannot be robbed but the merits
of mercy need to be examined, too. A message needs to be sent but at what cost?
After having worked in the prison system for over 30 years, I can tell see what
the future holds for the boy. When/if he returns to society, he will have the
best training available conducive to continued criminality. Thus, we will
gleefully throw away two lives for the price of one. Is that really what’s
best? I’m glad I’m not the one who has to decide.

Obama10SYRACUSE, UT

May 8, 2013 4:55 p.m.

This is a terrible tragedy for both families and a 17 year old who has ruined
his life in a moment of heated passion. How many of us have done stupid things
in our lives, especially as teenagers. The "mob mentality" of
"making an example" of him is a little rampant. As Attorney Gill
stated, "he didn't intend to kill him". He and his family will pay
dearly for the uncontrolled passion of this young man, if through no other ways
legal fees and a civil wrongful death suit, not too mention the life-long guilt.
Hopefully if you are ever in need of a little mercy and grace, others will be
kinder to you, than some of the comments on this board.

JBQSaint Louis, MO

May 8, 2013 4:53 p.m.

With respect for Ricardo Portillo, who tried to help his community. He did
honorable labor at a mattress factory to support a loving family. Very sad
result for an honorable man.

JWBKaysville, UT

May 8, 2013 4:28 p.m.

They didn't say who broke the coaches leg or his ribs earlier, but it
sounds as if violence is accepted by the league and parents attending the
games.

This was an accident waiting to happen.

OwlSalt Lake City, UT

May 8, 2013 4:04 p.m.

Dear conservative scientist,When you swing at the referee's head you
intend to do bodily harm. "Oh, I only meant to break his nose or put out an
eye, not kill him." Such distinctions are of little comfort to Mr.
Portillo's family.

The Real MaverickOrem, UT

May 8, 2013 3:47 p.m.

This kid is lucky to not be charged as the murderer he is.

Send him
away. Make an example out of him. Let this serve as a deterrent for future bad
sportsmanship. Parents and kids, y'all best think twice before lashing out
at other referees, umpires, officials, and coaches. To the Latino league, time
to clean up your act!

AggieloveCache county, USA

May 8, 2013 3:41 p.m.

Not sure of the details here, but is it safe to say, that parents go way
overboard with there children's sports?

conservative scientistLindon, UT

May 8, 2013 3:14 p.m.

This is a tragic situation. I don't agree with violence in any form and
there are likely only very few who really know this child's background,
although many posters seem to be expert on the intricacies of his childhood and
the nature of his problems - and they are perhaps correct, but may not be as
well.

We should all be cautious before we rush to judgement. It is
extremely unlikely that he meant to murder someone. Again, violence is never
acceptable, but occasionally kids fight and it was likely a terrible accident.
It is possible that this may have been a temporary lapse in judgment rather than
indicative of his entire character and of his past, present, and future
prospects. Justice must certainly be served and I feel awful for the victim and
all his family and friends, but I would still rather err on the side of mercy
regarding this young man. It is possible that trying this young man as an
adult, with all that this implies, could make a terrible situation even worse.

CatsSomewhere in Time, UT

May 8, 2013 1:48 p.m.

I suspect this kid probably has a history of out-of-control temper problems.
This kid is in deep doo doo.

Denver2PortlandDenver, CO

May 8, 2013 1:15 p.m.

Good! Teach this kid a lesson. Hopefully this teaches all parents, kids, etc.,
to keep cool and just remember it's just a game while playing or at a game.